Mr. Zhongli, we can't slack off anymore!

A thin layer of rain extinguished the ever-expanding ring of fire.

"You possess the Eye of the Geo element, yet you can use the Water element... No way... Hehe." Having seen the Traveler before, Hu Tao immediately connected the Traveler's identity to the Traveler.

"What I just used was a magical technique called rainmaking. It wasn't the Eye of God," the traveler said, making up a story with a straight face.

"Celestial arts? You even know immortals?"

"I know some of them."

"oh oh……"

When the rain stopped in a small area and the fire was extinguished, she rummaged through the pile of sacrificial offerings on the carriage and pulled out a ring.

"Thank goodness nothing was lost. Not a single item was lost."

"what is this?"

“Oh, these are the client’s belongings. This client had no parents, no brothers or sisters, and his wife passed away early. He also had no children. So, after his death, his belongings were kept by the ancestral hall. Every year during the memorial service, some are burned and some are buried.”

"I understand."

"In business, the most important thing is integrity. Even if no one will investigate what happens after death, you must abide by the contract exactly as the client entrusted before their death."

"It's a pity that we'll probably have to ship another batch of these sacrificial offerings."

"Yes, it's common to lose money in business, right? But thank goodness none of the client's belongings were lost."

*

Prepare a new set of sacrificial offerings.

The sky darkened, and the Milky Way appeared.

The staff and ritual attendants at the funeral parlor have all gone home.

Hu Tao originally intended to handle the aftermath alone, but the traveler insisted on coming along, so the two went together.

Once the offering table was set up, Hu Tao lit the candles and arranged the fruit plate according to the ritual sequence, each step taken with utmost composure.

"Funerals are the last dignified act for ordinary people. The 'Hall of Rebirth' is the final stroke of the scroll of life. Traditional funeral rites have many intricacies, including the laying of the body, the method of burial, the memorial tablets and utensils... all of these aspects have strict rules."

"Regardless of the deceased's social status or wealth, a dignified funeral should be provided for them. This is the way the Hall of Rebirth treats its guests."

"Finally, pour the paper money into the brazier and light it."

"Come, let's do it together." After lighting the paper money, Hu Tao called on the travelers to mourn the dead together.

The two stood in front of the offering table with their hands clasped together.

The cemetery was deathly silent, save for the sound of flames burning paper money during the ceremony.

"I've sent you this year's gifts too. Now, on your journey to the next life, don't look back..."

*

The ceremony has ended.

Hu Tao's serious face turned into a cheerful one again: "Since the night is still dark, why don't the two of us go for a night hike on Wuwang Slope, feel the cool air, and tell a few ghost stories?"

"It's time to eat," the traveler politely declined her suggestion.

“Oh right, we’ve been busy all day and haven’t had time to eat yet? How about... we go to Bubulu to perform a 49-day memorial service?”

"No," the traveler firmly refused.

"It's so boring to stay up all night doing nothing. Do you have any good ideas? Tell me."

"My plan is... to eat first, then sleep."

"Come on, come on! I'll show you something fun."

"Master, my old body can't take any more of this," the traveler said, rubbing his lower back.

"By the way, do you want to go out with me for the Lantern Festival? I'll introduce you to two new friends."

"I made an appointment to have dinner with Mr. Zhongli."

“Oh, that’s good. Every year, I, as his guest elder, am on duty alone in the hall. As the hall master, I can’t bear to see him alone. If you had come a few years earlier, I wouldn’t have had to worry about it.”

"Maybe he just likes being alone."

Hu Tao couldn't bear to see him spend the Lantern Festival alone, so she turned down her childhood friend's invitations every year.

The reason they brought me along this year is probably because they couldn't bear to see me spend the Lantern Festival alone.

"You know, he's so young, yet he speaks so maturely. What's his background?"

"Heh, isn't he just an ordinary person?" Upon hearing Hu Tao's words, the traveler tensed up.

You can't say the wrong thing.

"You two are so close, and you're even relatives, yet you don't know his background?"

"Because he is a distant relative, we don't usually keep in touch, and I don't know what he did before."

"Oh... if they are distant relatives, can you still get married?"

"Cough cough cough cough! What do you mean... no... no... it's not..." The traveler was almost driven away by her words.

"It's alright. I'm not some old-fashioned person. I won't interfere with your office romance."

"Haha...haha...Master, let's go home and rest early, haha..." The traveler patted his chest a few times to calm his wildly beating heart.

*

Manmin Hall.

"Xiangling, we're here again." As soon as Hu Tao stepped into Wanmintang, she called out Xiangling's name.

"It just so happens that I just made a new dish. I'll make it for you to try while there aren't many guests."

"That will trouble you," the traveler said politely.

"What's the trouble? Hey? Guoba... come out quickly." Xiangling took out Guoba and threw it to the traveler: "Hehe, this way he can't run away."

When travelers come to Wanmintang, they can't miss out on eating rice crackers, and every time they manage to get a layer of loose fur on their clothes.

So much so that Guoba would run away whenever it saw a traveler.

"Crispy rice crust...hehe!" The traveler hugged the soft crispy rice crust and began to stroke it all over.

"If you hadn't come, he would have secretly gone looking for you. But as soon as you arrived, he ran away. I really don't understand him." Xiangling rubbed her forehead.

*

Delicious food cleanses the mind after a long day of work.

The three of them got tired of chatting and laughing, so they said goodbye to each other.

The years are quiet.

A loud bang startled the entire Liyue family from their bedtime routine.

The traveler ran to the entrance of Wanmintang and saw only a plume of thick black smoke rising.

"Something's happened!" Hu Tao exclaimed first.

"It seems to be in the direction of Hanfeng Ironware," Xiangling pointed out.

"I'll go take a look!" The traveler ran forward with a heart full of trepidation.

Please don't let anything happen...

Could it be because of the forging of my weapon?

"You slow down!"

The traveler ran ahead, while Xiangling and Hutao chased after him.

As expected, Hanfeng Ironwares' shop was in a mess, and several residents were putting out the fire.

The traveler used water element to extinguish the burning flames.

"Cough cough." A figure appeared and disappeared in the white mist.

Old Zhang, covered in dust and dirt, emerged from the fog carrying a pitch-black weapon.

"It's done! I'm done!"

"Old Zhang, are you alright?" the neighbor asked cautiously.

"I did it! I made it! A legendary gun! I made it!" Old Zhang roared to the sky, seemingly insane...